Odd (but fun) Little Bars - Suggestions Please

I finally made it to Frankie's Tiki Room this trip and loved the place. Very cool little Hawaiian/Tiki theme with the old fashioned Tiki style glasses and a friendly bartender. My wife and I will be going back in October and plan to do a pub crawl. Or, spend a couple of nights just visiting different small bars for a drink as she has not been to all of my favorites. Please provide suggestions for other places to go. My favorites thus far, in order:

1, The Griffin
2, Frankie's Tiki Room
3, Dino's
4, Stage Door
5, Don't Tell Momma

Hat tip to Sam, I think we will stop by Drink and Drag for a beer as we have never been. Man, I wish Atomic was still open. I never made it to the place!

 

Drink and Drag is awesome!! And Frankie's Tiki Room is one of my all time favorites too. You have great taste in bars!

Be sure and check out the Double Down Saloon. I believe it is owned by the same folks who own Frankie's. It's a real hole in the wall kind of place but it is fun.

Cheers!!

 

You are correct, Double Down is owned by the same folks that own Frankie's. The bartender mentioned it to us and we were thinking about making a swing by.

 

Well it won't be open by October, but Atomic Liquors will reopen before 2013.
http://www.8newsnow.com/story/18921001/downtown-bar-looks-to-recapture-past-magic

 

Anyone try Insert Coins?

 

Yeah, Insert Coins is kind of cool. There's one side that's all working coin-op arcade games with many titles fron the 80's, then the other side has modern console systems (xbox, etc) that you can rent. I can't recall what I drank there, not memorable I guess. Get there early if you aren't into loud and crowd... It fills in as he night gets on.

To the OP, here's a few more for your list: Downtown Cocktail Lounge, Herbs and Rye (both good for a classic cocktail or a modern twist on one) and Aces and Ales (rock bar owned by Keri Kelli, Alice Cooper's guitarist).

Frankie's tops my list right now. I also enjoyed Don't Tell Mama. I haven't tried The Griffin, Dinos or Stage Door yet. My girlfriend and I are heading to Vegas again in October as well. If your trip overlaps Oct 22-29 maybe we can share a cab for the bar crawl.

 

The small "Bus Bar" of Rock & Rita's (in Circus Circus) is known for hosting the top "Flair" bartenders in the business. They've employed several world champions (yes, there are competitions for Flair) and they put on quite a show. And, the roster of food available at the bar is tasty.

Bill

 

Two recommendations:

Double Down. Kind of a punker-biker theme but everyone is welcome. They have this one signature nasty drink where the bartender plays like he's squeezing his wipe-off rag into it when he makes it.

Beauty Bar. Downtown. Great garage bands some evenings! Last time we were there the bouncer insisted I give him a hug when we left.

Both of these are very earthy in nature, the antithesis of the oh-so-trendy velvet rope clubs!

 

Thanks for the input! I will gladly accept other suggestions.
• Happily - I have tried Insert Coins and it was fun (50 now) to play some of the older games. I might stop in for another beer.
• Atom - You read my mind! I printed my LVA Herbs and Rye extended happy hour coupon last night. It is now on the list. I have to be honest, your mention of the Downtown Cocktail room was the first I had heard of it. Just looked it up and it appears an easy addition to the Freemont pub tour. Not sure I will make it to Ace's and Ales this time, that is a bit of a drive. FYI - Dino's is great for karaoke, is a bit funky but it is not a classic dive/eclectic place. Stage Door is a favorite because it is a dive, yet next to the Strip and a fun stop on the way to Ellis Island. Our trips do overlap; we will be there the 21st to 24th!
• UTE – We will be traveling with a 20something couple and Rock & Rita’s could easily be a stop.
• DMR – I think my wife will have fun at Beauty Bar. I stopped by there for a beer last summer. We definitely need to get there early on Saturday as the place will be a bit young for us later in the evening.

Thus far – two new additions, one repeat for my wife (Beauty Bar) and one during the week for the younger crew. I am keeping my eye on the old Freemont East Hooka(sp) lounge that is being turned into a beer garden. It looks as if it may not be ready by the end of October… sadness. However, happy to hear Atomic will be back in business.

 

I'm well into middle age, but I didn't feel awkward or out of place at the Beauty Bar.

I doubt if I would go to a place like that solo, but I found that the 20-somethings that hang out in places like that are far more laid back and down to earth than the velvet rope bottle service types that haunt the trendy on-the-strip nightclubs.

 

I am going to be paying a visit to Aces and Ales in September (although it looks very expensive) and the pub in Monte Carlo where i know they used to brew their own beer but they got rid of the brewery part, but are there any breweries in or around Vegas that you can visit?

 

mufc forever.

the pub in monty carlo-ellis island-and main street station brew their own beer.what time sept will u be there?

 

DMR, I suppose you are right. My main thing would be live music, it got really loud the Thursday I was there, fun but loud. Also forgot to mention that we stopped by the lounge at El Cortez last trip. They had a pretty good Elvis impersonator. I love free!

 

John I am there on the 27th sept for a week. Nice to see a fellow red on here!

 

It's really a small place. Yes, it can get incredibly loud in there!

There is one area which you can almost talk in, and that is up to the front, left of the entrance, where there are the seats with the fake hair dryers.